Composites made up of two or more reinforcement fibers are hybrid composites. Among the most common hybrid composites materials are carbon-aramid reinforced epoxy ( combines strength and impact endurance) and glass-carbon reinforced epoxy ( provides a durable material for a reasonable price). It is a structure functionalized as a composite tube or metal chassis with injection-molded plastic to make local attachment points, stiffening ribs, etc.
According to the market database, numerous engineering applications use composite materials due to their versatility, strength, lightweight, and low cost. Many interior and exterior applications of the automobile industry utilize composites and hybrid composites. They enhance the functional requirements simply by replacing the existing material, using simple manufacturing methods of fabrication techniques. For instance, polymer matrix blended fibers can provide synergistic effects that cannot be achieved by normal composites.
Lighter mobile phone with hybrid composites
Berlin-based Carbon Mobile has created a carbon fiber composite case for mobile phones. In the company’s view, carbon fiber is both a conductor of electromagnetic energy and advanced material for durable, lightweight structures. As a result, it blocks radio signals, creating a faraday cage, and instead of allowing networks through, it disperses them around the outer casing.
The four-year development program Hybrid Radio Enabled Composite Material (HyRECM) has been a success for the company. It is a lightweight material with the rugged properties of carbon fiber. It includes complimentary radio-enabled glass fiber to ensure signal capabilities from a 0.6mm stack of three layers of carbon fiber fabric fused with a silver inkjet antenna support system.
The antenna is embedded in the fabric to resolve connectivity issues. Using carbon fiber as a case, the team produced the world’s thinnest, lightest smartphone, with less than 5% plastic. Today, an average mobile phone weighs 182 grams, but the new Carbon Mobile model weighs only 125 grams.
Hybrid composites for medical solutions
A waitlist of nearly 107,000 people awaits an organ transplant in the United States. With millions of people waiting for organs around the world, the problem is even worse. Unfortunately, there are only a limited number of organs.
According to the market database, the holy grail of eliminating these supply issues has often been touted as 3D bioprinting organs. Like traditional 3D printing, 3D bioprinting involves layering patient stem cells one by one in a biocompatible material to create an organ-like structure. The scaffolding material, usually collagen or a synthetic plastic that mimics collagen, programs the stem cells to differentiate into specific cell types. By this method, a hybrid composite can be implanted into a patient. Essentially, the 3D bio-printed organ is composed of cells, scaffolding, and nutrients mixed in a bio-ink mixture that is then extruded into a 3D structure by the bioprinter.
The first biotech company to commercialize bio-ink was CELLINK (CLNK-B.ST). The Swedish company was founded in 2016 and provides 3D bioprinting tools and materials for the entire workflow. It’s been selling branded bio-inks, biomaterials, bioprinters, consumables, and sanitizing wipes.
Composite and Hybrid Materials Interfacing
Oakland University is partnering with the University of Tennessee-Knoxville and the Georgia Institute of Technology on collaborative research designed to advance engineering research.
The National Science Foundation is supporting the establishment of the Industry-University Cooperative Research Center for Composite and Hybrid Materials Interfacing (CHMI). There will be three closely coordinated sites at each of the partner universities.
The market database states that researchers at each site will concentrate on a different application thrust and sector of the U.S. economy. Tennessee Knoxville will focus on biomedical and infrastructure technology, Georgia Tech on aerospace, and Oakland on autonomous vehicles and farming equipment.
The CHMI’s research focuses on material joining, dissimilar-material compatibility, contact surface treatment, corrosion protection, and non-destructive testing and inspection. In the United States, this research has applications in aerospace, automotive, national security, biomedicine, and the energy sector.
According to the market database, the increasing demand for lightweight, energy-efficient products has prompted the desire for hybrid composite materials over the past several decades. A wide variety of industries rely on cutting-edge research to improve quality control because of the properties of these materials, such as electrical conductivity, chemical reactions, and mechanical strength.
The project aims to reduce the cost, cycle time, and performance variation of hybrid composite material interfaces over the coming years. To achieve this, design, modeling, and analysis; materials and process engineering; testing and non-destructive evaluation; and secure data and digital technologies of these materials will be studied. The hybrid composites market and its 10-year business outlook can be understood using Global Market Database.
